1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to specialized limb garments and, more particularly, is concerned with an arm protective garment.
2. Description of the Prior Art
A variety of specialized needs have sparked the development in recent years of specific garments designed for a person's arms and legs individually as well as jointly. For example, a policeman directing night traffic must be visible to motorists. Athletes such as pitchers or quarterbacks must keep their throwing arms in optimum condition for greatest effectiveness in baseball or football games. An athlete's legs also often require specialized clothing to prevent cramps, sprains, etc.
Some representative examples of garments designed to meet such needs are disclosed in U.S. patents to Girest (3,837,007), Vernon et al (4,356,570), Kerwin (4,569,087), and Perry (4,985,934). The Girest garment addresses the policeman's needs for light-reflective clothing with a jacket having sleeves of reflectorized material or with a pair of such auxiliary sleeves attachable to a police jacket.
The garments disclosed in the Vernon et al, Kerwin and Perry designs all address the specific problems of athletes as hereinbefore described. The Vernon et al and Perry garments basically focus on an athlete's arm requirements with their designs of single-arm garments. These garments extend over one shoulder of the athlete for attachment either to the athlete's uniform or to straps encircling the athlete's chest or other shoulder. The Kerwin garment designs include both single limb garments, for arms and legs individually, as well as full jackets and pants. All of the aforementioned garments have thermal features for retaining limb warmth. The latter three designs include both thermal and cooling features for the athlete's limbs as needed.
The ordinary motorist may wish to particularly shield his hand and arm from sunburn while driving along on his or her usual daily route, or on longer vacations drives. Air conditioning is great, but driving on a lovely day with one's arm resting on the ledge of an open car window is found enjoyable by many drivers. The driver's enjoyment, however, can be shattered if the drive results in a severe sunburn to the hand or arm.
The garment designs hereinbefore described disclose some features beneficial to the driver's needs. A single-arm type of garment would be most useful since usually, for drivers, the left hand and arm is the most likely to be sunburned. However, none of the designs described above addresses the problem of sunburn prevention. No protective coverage for the hand is provided by any of the garments. Each of the athlete's garments basically focuses on the athlete's need either to retain or dispel body warmth. Additionally, the single-arm garments disclosed in the Girest policeman's garment and the Vernon et al athletic garment require attachable fastening features on the person's underlying shirt or jacket.
Consequently, a need still exists for a single-arm garment which would shield both a driver's hand and arm from sunburn. The garment should be fabricated of sun-resistant, durable, washable material and of simple design and construction for easy wearability by a driver. The simplicity of design and construction would also ensure inexpensive manufacture of the garment. The garment should be foldable to a compact size for easy storage and transport.